Dr. No vs Goldfinger

chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
edited October 2014 in The James Bond Films
In DN we get raw literary-esque Bond in a stripped-down & dirty adventure with few frills & terriffic performances.
In GF we truely get out of the Fifties and into an iconic cinematic template that many would follow.

Personally, I get more of a kick out of DN for its spartan enthuasiasm, though the slick & pretty GF is a lot of fun certainly... -{
Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
#1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS

Comments

  • FiremassFiremass AlaskaPosts: 1,910MI6 Agent
    Goldfinger followed the novel just as faithfully as Dr. No did, therefor GF is both literary AND cinematic. :)
    My current 10 favorite:

    1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
  • ThunderpussyThunderpussy Behind you !Posts: 63,792MI6 Agent
    Tough choice ( thankfully in the real world, we don't have to choose ) -{
    But of the two I'd plump for Goldfinger, simply great entertainment. ;)
    "I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
  • AlphaOmegaSinAlphaOmegaSin EnglandPosts: 10,926MI6 Agent
    DN was more a Detective Film, GF was more of an Epic Film -{
    1.On Her Majesties Secret Service 2.The Living Daylights 3.license To Kill 4.The Spy Who Loved Me 5.Goldfinger
  • hehadlotsofgutshehadlotsofguts Durham England Posts: 2,112MI6 Agent
    AlphaOmegaSin wrote:
    DN was more a Detective Film, GF was more of an Epic Film -{

    My thoughts exactly! -{
    Have you ever heard of the Emancipation Proclamation?"

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  • broadshoulderbroadshoulder Acton, London, UKPosts: 1,363MI6 Agent
    Will plump Goldfinger, but Dr No remains my favourite book
    1. For Your Eyes Only 2. The Living Daylights 3 From Russia with Love 4. Casino Royale 5. OHMSS 6. Skyfall
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    broadshoulder wrote:
    Will plump Goldfinger, but Dr No remains my favourite book
    Dr. No is one of my four favourite Bond books, but my main concern in the movie is that they only skimmed the surface of how painful it was for Bond to escape his cell. Still, it was pretty well done.
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Goldfinger.
  • Gassy ManGassy Man USAPosts: 2,972MI6 Agent
    They're really two different kinds of films, expert each in their own way. Goldfinger nudges Dr. No out slightly for me only because scene-for-scene, it is a nearly perfect film. Dr. No drags a bit in part and suffers at times from seeming a bit old-fashioned, for lack of a better term -- more like a 1950s adventure. But Joseph Wiseman's Dr. No is every bit as iconic as Gert Frobe's Goldfinger, and as the two villains are so different in personality, it's remarkable how successful they both are. Connery actually gets more to do in Dr. No, too, as Bond isn't quite servant to the gadgets yet.
  • BRIXMISBRIXMIS Great BritainPosts: 171MI6 Agent
    chrisisall wrote:
    In DN we get raw literary-esque Bond in a stripped-down & dirty adventure with few frills & terriffic performances.
    In GF we truely get out of the Fifties and into an iconic cinematic template that many would follow.

    Personally, I get more of a kick out of DN for its spartan enthuasiasm, though the slick & pretty GF is a lot of fun certainly... -{
    Im with you on this.
  • BlackleiterBlackleiter Washington, DCPosts: 5,615MI6 Agent
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Goldfinger.

    Ditto. -{
    "Felix Leiter, a brother from Langley."
  • Gala BrandGala Brand Posts: 1,172MI6 Agent
    chrisisall wrote:
    broadshoulder wrote:
    Will plump Goldfinger, but Dr No remains my favourite book
    Dr. No is one of my four favourite Bond books, but my main concern in the movie is that they only skimmed the surface of how painful it was for Bond to escape his cell. Still, it was pretty well done.


    Bond suffers physically, mentally, emotionally a lot more in the books than in the movies. Until Daniel Craig, that is.
  • broadshoulderbroadshoulder Acton, London, UKPosts: 1,363MI6 Agent
    Gala Brand wrote:
    chrisisall wrote:
    broadshoulder wrote:
    Will plump Goldfinger, but Dr No remains my favourite book
    Dr. No is one of my four favourite Bond books, but my main concern in the movie is that they only skimmed the surface of how painful it was for Bond to escape his cell. Still, it was pretty well done.


    Bond suffers physically, mentally, emotionally a lot more in the books than in the movies. Until Daniel Craig, that is.

    To be honest I think Dalts is just as successful.

    To be honest did we actually have a Bond who would walk on, smirk, and say those dreadful lines. Mind you, Rog is a favourite
    1. For Your Eyes Only 2. The Living Daylights 3 From Russia with Love 4. Casino Royale 5. OHMSS 6. Skyfall
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    broadshoulder wrote:
    To be honest I think Dalts is just as successful.
    He was beat to sh*t at the end of LTK... :o
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • Virgil37Virgil37 Posts: 1,212MI6 Agent
    Gala Brand wrote:
    chrisisall wrote:
    broadshoulder wrote:
    Will plump Goldfinger, but Dr No remains my favourite book
    Dr. No is one of my four favourite Bond books, but my main concern in the movie is that they only skimmed the surface of how painful it was for Bond to escape his cell. Still, it was pretty well done.


    Bond suffers physically, mentally, emotionally a lot more in the books than in the movies. Until Daniel Craig, that is.

    Very good point. You put into words what I have felt since since I first saw CR.
  • CmdrAtticusCmdrAtticus United StatesPosts: 1,102MI6 Agent
    edited November 2014
    Difficult for me to choose between the two. If I could only watch one, it would be GF. DN has become very dated to me and lost a lot of it's shine. GF had perfect casting (except for Leiter - which they didn't get right in DN either). GF had better music. I like how low tech DN is - the Service comes across as being a smaller operation as in Fleming's novel - no lasers or homing devices - so Bond has to rely on his wits and physical courage as he does in the novel. However, the DB5 is just a lot of fun and the laser introduced the future into the series. DN's pacing is too uneven and slow in parts, which is strange considering Young is the director. Compare it to FRWL and it's as if it was directed by someone else.

    As much as I like NO since it's the first film and it tried to stay close to the novel and introduced Bond to film, I'll have to tip my bowler hat to GF.
  • TecoloteTecolote Mississippi,USAPosts: 121MI6 Agent
    DN,being the first film,keeps Bond closer to Fleming. They didn't know whether or not there would be another one. Gf is the template for the future Bonds and has better production values,and a better budget(DN didn't even have a real PPK...). GF is better than the novel,especially with the better plan to irradiate Ft. Knox's gold. Still, I prefer DN, as I still don't understand, after all these years, just why Goldfinger keeps Bond alive, either in the book or the film...

    Regards,

    Tecolote
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    Tecolote wrote:
    I still don't understand, after all these years, just why Goldfinger keeps Bond alive, either in the book or the film...
    Like Carver in TND, Goldfinger liked an audience. B-)
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    Blackleiter wrote:
    Virgil37 wrote:
    Goldfinger.
    Ditto. -{

    Bond was not conceived as a super hero, & the movies at the beginning were not designed as blockbusters. Cinematically, Goldfinger was the pivotal moment. Big & flashy, yet heavily Fleming at the same time. That precise mix would never happen again IMHO, and the reason so many feel it's the perfect Bond movie. For me, smaller films are more Fleminesque (not to say others like YOLT, TSWLM & TND aren't fine achievements).
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • welshboy78welshboy78 Posts: 10,320MI6 Agent
    Both classics but so different. Quite hard to compare

    GF wins simply due to the entertainment factor and Bond magic that created the template for the future - Bassey, the suits, Aston etc

    You really do get the Fleming vibe with Dr No though
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  • BlackleiterBlackleiter Washington, DCPosts: 5,615MI6 Agent
    chrisisall wrote:
    Cinematically, Goldfinger was the pivotal moment. Big & flashy, yet heavily Fleming at the same time. That precise mix would never happen again IMHO, and the reason so many feel it's the perfect Bond movie

    Precisely. -{
    "Felix Leiter, a brother from Langley."
  • AlphaOmegaSinAlphaOmegaSin EnglandPosts: 10,926MI6 Agent
    GF was one of the first Bonds I ever saw, so it will always remain high on my List -{
    1.On Her Majesties Secret Service 2.The Living Daylights 3.license To Kill 4.The Spy Who Loved Me 5.Goldfinger
  • DEFIANT 74205DEFIANT 74205 Perth, AustraliaPosts: 1,881MI6 Agent
    welshboy78 wrote:
    You really do get the Fleming vibe with Dr No though

    ... and that's why I prefer Dr No to Goldfinger. It's that simple, really. Connery played Bond in Dr No and From Russia With Love with more of a straight bat than in subsequent films.

    Somehow, I think the Bond in Dr No - the Bond who (attempted) to interrogate Jones, and the photographer, who then brutally assassinated Professor Dent, is a bit more deadly than the Bond who drinks mint julep with Goldfinger on his porch.

    I don't dislike Goldfinger - it's number 4 on my list. It has a lot of redeeming features, including that PTS, Dame Shirley Bassey's beautiful song that remains - in my view - the best Bond theme song (other than the James Bond Theme itself), the DB5, Connery at his peak ... and more. Goldfinger is great entertainment, but from a Fleming purist's point of view, I can't possibly rate it higher than any of From Russia With Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service or Dr No.
    "Watch the birdie, you bastard!"
  • BIG TAMBIG TAM Wrexham, North Wales, UK.Posts: 773MI6 Agent
    Goldfinger
  • CmdrAtticusCmdrAtticus United StatesPosts: 1,102MI6 Agent
    Tecolote wrote:
    DN,being the first film,keeps Bond closer to Fleming. They didn't know whether or not there would be another one. Gf is the template for the future Bonds and has better production values,and a better budget(DN didn't even have a real PPK...). GF is better than the novel,especially with the better plan to irradiate Ft. Knox's gold. Still, I prefer DN, as I still don't understand, after all these years, just why Goldfinger keeps Bond alive, either in the book or the film...

    Regards,

    Tecolote


    I always thought he kept Bond alive to make the Service and CIA think Bond was still investigating him. If he snuffed him out they would have officially investigated him to find out what happened to Bond which would have upset his whole time table for the caper. Once Bond found out what Grand Slam was GF knew it was even more in his best interest to keep Bond close so as not to alert the authorities.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    Good answer.
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
  • welshboy78welshboy78 Posts: 10,320MI6 Agent
    CmdrAtticus wrote:
    Tecolote wrote:
    DN,being the first film,keeps Bond closer to Fleming. They didn't know whether or not there would be another one. Gf is the template for the future Bonds and has better production values,and a better budget(DN didn't even have a real PPK...). GF is better than the novel,especially with the better plan to irradiate Ft. Knox's gold. Still, I prefer DN, as I still don't understand, after all these years, just why Goldfinger keeps Bond alive, either in the book or the film...

    Regards,

    Tecolote


    I always thought he kept Bond alive to make the Service and CIA think Bond was still investigating him. If he snuffed him out they would have officially investigated him to find out what happened to Bond which would have upset his whole time table for the caper. Once Bond found out what Grand Slam was GF knew it was even more in his best interest to keep Bond close so as not to alert the authorities.

    Thats the sensible answer but when I watch the film I get the feeling its not lol
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  • CmdrAtticusCmdrAtticus United StatesPosts: 1,102MI6 Agent
    welshboy78 wrote:
    CmdrAtticus wrote:
    Tecolote wrote:
    DN,being the first film,keeps Bond closer to Fleming. They didn't know whether or not there would be another one. Gf is the template for the future Bonds and has better production values,and a better budget(DN didn't even have a real PPK...). GF is better than the novel,especially with the better plan to irradiate Ft. Knox's gold. Still, I prefer DN, as I still don't understand, after all these years, just why Goldfinger keeps Bond alive, either in the book or the film...

    Regards,

    Tecolote


    I always thought he kept Bond alive to make the Service and CIA think Bond was still investigating him. If he snuffed him out they would have officially investigated him to find out what happened to Bond which would have upset his whole time table for the caper. Once Bond found out what Grand Slam was GF knew it was even more in his best interest to keep Bond close so as not to alert the authorities.

    Thats the sensible answer but when I watch the film I get the feeling its not lol


    It's not laugh out loud?
  • Absolutely_CartAbsolutely_Cart NJ/NYC, United StatesPosts: 1,740MI6 Agent
    Goldfinger had a more fully realized villain and a more clever plan. Dr. No had some tense moments on the later part, but the middle part had some really weak parts. Really? People mistaked a tank for an actual dragon? Goldfinger was stronger all around.
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  • chrisisallchrisisall Western Mass, USAPosts: 9,062MI6 Agent
    Absolutely_Cart wrote:
    Goldfinger had a more fully realized villain and a more clever plan. Dr. No had some tense moments on the later part, but the middle part had some really weak parts. Really? People mistaked a tank for an actual dragon? Goldfinger was stronger all around.
    I don't disagree with any particular part here. :)
    Dalton & Connery rule. Brozz was cool.
    #1.TLD/LTK 2.TND 3.GF 4.GE 5.DN 6.FYEO 7.FRWL 8.TMWTGG 9.TWINE 10.YOLT/QOS
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